FAO and China have signed a two-year tripartite cooperation agreement worth about N$10.5 million (US$1.5 million) that will boost the efforts of local farmers in Namibia. The agreement, which is intended to make training and technical support available to the Namibian agricultural sector, was developed within the context of the FAO and China’s South South Cooperation Strategic Partnership.

Signing the agreement on behalf of the Namibian Government was the Minister of Agriculture, Water and Forestry, John Mutorwa, who said there was "no doubt that the implementation of the agreement would contribute to the development of the agricultural sector." He added that it would "also improve Namibia’s capacity to contribute to the achievement of regional, continental and global farming goals. It is therefore imperative for Namibia to embrace the opportunity that is presented by this agreement by ensuring that it is promptly and effectively implemented,” said Mutorwa.

Xin Shunkang said the agreement complements another agricultural agreement between the two countries, which is valued at N$1 billion and concerns the cultivation of maize and tobacco in Katima Mulilo. 

FAO and China’s South South Cooperation Strategic Partnership has been designed to improve rice development, increase yields of horticultural crops as well as improve understanding and mutual exchange of veterinary policies in support of the Namibian Government’s policy on the eradication of trans-boundary animal diseases in the northern communal areas of the country. The key activities of the project will involve capacity development, technology transfer and technical consultation. 

The project will also see technical and managerial staff from the agriculture ministry undertake specialised training in China. The staff members are in turn expected to impart the knowledge gained in China to the wider farming community in Namibia. 

Furthermore, the project will provide Chinese experts in veterinary science, rice cultivation, vegetable varieties, citrus production, crop protection and soil and fertilizer management. The experts, some of whom are expected to arrive in the country next week, will undertake their specialized duties while assigned to various irrigation sites, research stations and veterinary laboratories around Namibia.

“The benefits brought about by the mutual sharing and exchange of development solutions including knowledge, experiences, policies, good practice, technology and resources are enormous especially if properly adopted and adapted to the local environment,” said FAO Representative in Namibia, Babagana Ahmadu. He added that achieving food and nutrition security “is a challenge too great for any single entity to overcome alone. It must involve civil society, the private sector, international agencies and the governments of developing and developed countries. Above all, the people themselves need to be empowered to manage their own development.”  In a media statement, he explained that “the benefits brought by the mutual sharing and exchange of development solutions, including knowledge, experiences, policies, good practice, technology and resources, are enormous, especially if they are adopted and adapted to the local environment”. Ahmadu added that the project will also involve capacity development, technology transfer and technical consultations and the project will focus on the extension service providers that work with small scale farmers and agribusiness enterprises in the production, processing and marketing of agricultural products.

Namibia is zoned for animal disease purposes by the veterinary cordon fence(VCF), whereby 60 percent of the livestock in Namibia, north of the VCF are excluded from lucrative world markets, reducing their value and negating their contributions to growth and poverty reduction.

Ahmadu said, “Small-scale farmers and agribusiness enterprises will also benefit directly through hands-on training and on- farm demonstrations. What we want is to see small scale producers intensify production in crops, horticulture and livestock as well as to witness agribusiness thriving through value addition, thereby enhancing rural livelihoods”.